


there's no other option.

by enbymickey



Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: M/M, ian asks lip to be his best man, season 10 fill in, some brother bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-05-21
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:48:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24306940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enbymickey/pseuds/enbymickey
Summary: Ian suddenly remembers the last time they did this,  the last time they had one of their big talks with a tub of ice cream between them to share.  He was going off to jail,  they were talking about where they would be years from now and he laughs,  out loud,  because he can’t help it.  He never saw this coming,  any of it.  Ian wasn’t expecting to turn around in his cell to find Mickey  then nearly a later be out and engaged to him.  He knows Lip wasn’t expecting to have a kid,  planning on moving to Milwaukee with his new family.  He wasn’t expecting that a year later he’d be sitting in this van asking Lip to be his best man in his wedding to Mickey Milkovich.
Relationships: Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich
Comments: 8
Kudos: 118





	there's no other option.

**Author's Note:**

> so I think it's illegal that they just didn't show us ian asking lip to be his best man so of course i had to fix that. for vic, willa and michelle that i somehow can't link but ily and thank u for the support <3 hope you all enjoy. i hope everyone is staying well and safe!

There’s a forgotten cigarette between Ian’s fingers, long overdue ashes falling to the grass as he leans against the van in the backyard. There’s something on his mind, just like there always seems to be. He needs a best man. More like he needs to ask Lip to be his best man because there’s no other option. There’s no question about who it should be, there was only one option. He’s shared so much of his life with Lip, side by side through everything so of course that’s the only person he wants standing up there with him while he marries his soulmate. 

Cigarette starts to burn him as soon as he hears Lip coming out of his RV. He yelps out a fuck then drops it to the ground. Lip’s only response is to laugh and shake his head as fingers are shoved into his jacket pocket, walking towards him. 

“It’s cold as balls out here man, if you don’t want to marry Mickey you could just tell him, you don’t have to freeze to death.” 

Ian lets out a laugh, dropping his head as his smile becomes tight. “You know, you’re not funny.”

“You keep telling me yet you keep laughing.” and Ian can’t deny that, there is no denying that. His entire life he’s looked up to Lip and truly thought he was the funniest person alive ever since they were kids and that hasn’t changed to this day, so much has happened between them and in life but he still looks up to his big brother like he’s six years old and Lip is reading the comic books he had stolen just hours ago. 

He thinks about the hours they spent in this van just smoking and talking, listening to music and just growing up together, hiding from the rest of the family. It’s where Lip finally accepted him, it's where he laughed for the first time with his best friend after the break up that he refuses to think about right now. It’s perfect, there’s no other place that would be right for this and he knows he’d get called dramatic, **_a soft bitch_ ** if any of these thoughts were to be let out but he doesn’t care. 

“Get in the van.” His smile is bright and wide, a little mysterious like he has a plan and he knows Lip can tell because he’s giving him that same look they used to share when they were kids and Fiona told them to get in bed but instead they stayed up all night doing nothing but staying up just because they were told not to. It’s a look they haven’t shared in a while, both trying to be responsible adults with so much on their plate but Mickey is sleeping, Tami and Fred are probably doing the same so why not ask his brother to be his best man while - well, it’s not like they can get drunk because of Lip, probably not a good idea to get high either. But, there’s another option. 

“One second.” He’s in the door and back out in only thirty seconds, smiling wide as he comes back with ice cream in his hand and two spoons. This does feel like they’re kids again, sneaking ice cream and staying up late. They’re just not drinking or smoking like they would’ve but somehow this is better, they’re proving they’re not their parents, that they’re going to do better than what they’ve seen and it makes Ian feel even more confident and sure about marrying Mickey. 

He hands him a spoon and Lip playfully shoves him towards the van, getting into their respective sides that they never claimed but just ended up that way. 

  
  


The van smells the same as it always has, like there’s something dead living in it mixed with sex and drugs but that’s never stopped them before. Ian pops open the top to the ice cream, shoving his spoon into it before Lip gets the chance. A smirk as he moves the ice cream slightly towards himself so Lip can’t reach it. “Jesus, you’re getting married in a few days and you still act twelve.” He’s not lying but he’s also laughing as he tries to grab it once again, this time succeeding and getting himself a spoon full of ice cream. 

  
  


Ian suddenly remembers the last time they did this, the last time they had one of their big talks with a tub of ice cream between them to share. He was going off to jail, they were talking about where they would be years from now and he laughs, out loud, because he can’t help it. He never saw this coming, **_any of it_ **. Ian wasn’t expecting to turn around in his cell to find Mickey then nearly a later be out and engaged to him. He knows Lip wasn’t expecting to have a kid, planning on moving to Milwaukee with his new family. He wasn’t expecting that a year later he’d be sitting in this van asking Lip to be his best man in his wedding to Mickey Milkovich. 

“What’s so funny?” Lip asks, swallowing some ice cream and Ian just shrugs because the only answer he has is: **_life._ **

“Was thinking about asking Carl to be my best man, is all.” He feels like a little kid, playing some prank on his brother that he knows Lip can see right through but played along anyway because he’s Lip and that’s just who he is. 

“And to think I’ve had the best man speech written since you two started messing around.” 

And, it hits him, it’s coming back to him now that Lip has been there through it all. Every single part of their relationship, Lip has been there and he kept it all a secret even when he didn’t have to, even when he could’ve used it against Mickey, he didn’t. As a kid he didn’t understand the weight of that, he didn’t understand a lot of things as a kid, but now he’s an adult and he **_understands_ **. He understands how big that was, especially for Lip who didn’t even seem to care about Mickey at that point. 

Ian has never been good at the words **_thank you_ ** or **_i’m sorry_ **but the first one feels like it’s necessary, it feels long past due. “Thanks for all that.” It’s sincere, his eyes are soft and gentle as he looks at his big brother. Lip replies with nothing but an eye roll, a sincere smile and shoving the ice cream back into the hands of Ian and he takes it with a smile because there doesn’t need to be words, they know. 

“You're really going to move to milwaukee?” A question that’s been sitting on Ian’s tongue for a while now. He’s proud of his brother, proud that he’s gotten what he’s always wanted but is it really a good decision? Is Lip moving hours away from the southside, his family, and his job such a good idea? Or is that just Ian worrying once again there’s always something, there always has to be a catch to the good things because for so long one good thing would cause hundreds of things to spiral downwards until hitting rock bottom. He just wants Lip to be happy. 

“I don’t know. You really going to marry Mickey?” It comes out as a genuine question like he’s actually worried that Ian’s going to pull something again and Ian understands, he’s not angry at Lip for asking the question but he’s angry at himself that it even has to be a question. He’s angry at himself that him leaving Mickey has become a “ **_thing”_ **according to Lip because Mickey doesn’t deserve that, Mickey has never deserved that. He likes that Lip seems to agree with that now.

“Absolutely.” There’s no doubt, no hesitation because there isn’t any. He’s sure, he’s always been sure, he just needed time to catch up. “You wanna be my best man?” 

“I have a choice?” No, he doesn’t and not because Ian would force him but because he knows Lip would do anything for him. Over the past few years everything has been such a question for him, since his diagnosis he was always second guessing everything. _If he was good enough for Mickey, what is his purpose, should he fight for the job or let it go, gay jesus and just who he is._ All of it was always such a question, but he’s always known Mickey is it for him and he’s always known Lip was going to be standing by his side during that. Neither of them had a choice when it came to each other but neither of them wanted a choice.

“No but you’ll do it?”

“Can’t let that best man speech go to waste.” **_Ian laughs, really laughs._ **

“My bachelor party better have more than ice cream.” Is there even going to be a bachelor party? He should ask Mickey.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to get some cake too.” 

They both laugh, ice cream now nearly gone. 

“What’s next after the big gay wedding? You gonna do the whole kids thing with Mick? Do the whole gay dads thing? Adopt? Gonna have Mickey stick it in Debbie or something?” 

“Jesus christ, Lip.” It’s something he’s avoided thinking about because he doesn’t really know, he doesn’t know if he can be a dad on top of everything else. But, watching Lip somehow manage it has made him hopeful, has made him think about wanting something he hasn’t let himself think about since that summer years ago. 

“I think we’re good with just being the big gay uncles for now, pops.” 

He’s about to say something else but his phone vibrates in his pocket, ice cream is given back to Lip as he digs for it out of his pocket. It’s a text from Mickey telling him to get his ass to bed or he’s locking him out. He smiles, he’s happy and Lip is looking at him like he **_knows._ **

“Should get up there before you're locked out.” And of course Lip says that, they really are more similar than either have seemed to see. Shaking his head as he puts his phone away. 

It was a good night, he’s glad he got to spend it with his brother and he’s glad that as soon as he walks up those stairs he’ll be with Mickey. 

“Thanks, best man. Tell Freddie big gay uncle ian says hi.” Then, Lip swats at him, telling him to get out of there and he does. He’s out of the van and he’s climbing the back stairs two at a time and he’s in the house. Rubbing his hands together to create warmth, not realizing how cold he really was until the heat hits his face. The house is quiet, it makes him smile. 

He’s up the stairs and he’s in front of his door, his and Mickey's door, still smiling as he opens it and eyes see that Mickey’s sitting up, on his phone with his brows pinched as he’s typing something not so happily but he stops as soon as Ian enters. “Fuckin’ finally, where the fuck did you go?”

Ian’s removing his shoes and layers of clothes, down to his underwear then he’s climbing into bed with his cold body wrapping around Mickey’s just to annoy him, Mickey pushes him away but Ian doesn’t move. Mickey gives up. “Hanging out with Lip. Had to ask him to be my best man.”

“You had to fuckin’ ask?” And Ian feels warm despite how cold he actually is, he likes that Mickey just understands his relationship with Lip, how important his brother is to him. Hell, Mickey understands his relationships with his entire family and he appreciates that more than anything. 

“Yeah, wanted it to be official.” He shrugs, moving so he’s laying down on his back and bringing Mickey with him who only grumbles about it half heartedly, his head immediately resting on Ian’s chest. 

“Soft bitch.” He feels a kiss pressed to his shoulder and Ian responds with a kiss to his head. He’s tired, it’s been a long day.

“Goodnight, Mick.” 

“Night, Ian.” 

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed ! i wrote most of it at 4 am so if it sucks we can just blame it on that. leave a comment and kudos if you wish ! leave requests if you got any and i hope everyone is staying safe !
> 
> twitter: ianlovebot  
> tumblr: sandymilkovich


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